Amelia “Mia” Milling decided to take a 3-day adventure back in the summer of 2018, hiking Crow Pass Trail in Alaska’s Chugach State Park.
Unfortunately, her trip was cut short when she had an accident.
The 22-year-old was only 4 miles into her trek when she slipped. And it was a big fall.
Milling tumbled 300 feet down the side of a snowy mountain before hitting a large boulder.
She was stranded and injured in the snowy wilderness and because Milling is also deaf, that made it a lot harder to get her bearings.
After another slide of about 400 feet, she was also nursing an injured leg.
That’s when a white figure approached her at the bottom of the mountain.
At first, Milling thought it was a wolf.
That’s enough to frighten anyone, much less someone who has been badly injured.
But once the animal got closer, she saw a collar and tag around its neck and realized it was a dog.
The Husky, named Nanook, seemed to realize she was in need of help. He was very friendly as he approached her with his tail wagging.
Unfortunately, it seemed no one else was around, which meant that she’d need to get back onto a trail if she wanted to get help.
Nanook gave her a hand, helping her back to relative safety.
But she was still 4 miles into the trail and there weren’t any other humans around. She spent the night injured, but not alone. Nanook stayed with her throughout her ordeal and kept her warm by cuddling up next to her at night.
Alas, there was still a long way to go before the end of the trail.
But with “Nookie” by her side, she kept on going.
But near-disaster struck again when the pair approached a river they needed to cross.
Milling’s leg just wasn’t up to working against the current. She slipped once more and was nearly pulled under the water.
Nanook came to her rescue, allowing her to grab his collar while he pulled her out. But she couldn’t go any further.
Milling had no choice but to use a satellite phone to make an SOS call. Alaskan State Troopers swooped in for a helicopter rescue.
Once she was safe, Milling set about looking for Nanook’s owner.
That’s when she found out the dog that rescued her was kind of a big deal. In fact, she’s not the first hiker he’s rescued!
Nanook and his owner, Scott Swift, live near the Crow Pass Trail and the very good boy enjoys traversing the trail and socializing with the hikers quite often.
Swift says he knows of at least three hikers Nanook has rescued, including a little girl caught in the same river Milling slipped in.
Nicknamed “Nookie,” he’s also got some new fans in the Alaska State Troopers:
“Nookie was nothing short of a modern-day, Lassie (type) hero,” Lt. Eric Olsen, one of the troopers who helped save Milling, told KTVA-TV.
After Milling’s story went viral, Swift decided to start a Facebook page so other hikers could share stories about their encounters with Nanook along the trail.
Nookie sometimes goes for days-long adventures. But Swift knows he’s out there having fun and saving lives. And he can even keep track of his pup when people post photos from the trail!
“After a three day adventure on Crow Pass trail Nanook is finally home. It turns out that he went back-and-forth up to the pass a few times with different people before deciding which party he wanted to go all the way to Eagle River with. A big thank you to everyone who sent messages (and dozens of photos and videos) letting me know what he was up to!” he said after one such adventure.
Nanook is one amazing dog!
In fact, he was presented with the 2019 Red Cross Real Hero award for Wilderness Rescue in 2019!
As for Milling, she’s still in touch with the Swifts and even returned to Alaska a few months later to visit her fluffy rescuer.
Everyone was happy to see one another again.
Be sure to scroll down below for more details on their dramatic story.
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